As both a musician and a long-time film score aficionado, it grieves me that my first post as an official contributor for AwardsDaily will be an obituary for James Horner. The prolific, longtime film composer died in a plane crash near Santa Barbara on Monday. Horner was only 61 years old, and leaves behind a wife and two daughters.
Although Horner was already an accomplished classically-trained musician and composer before his cinematic career, Horner started in Hollywood the same way that Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, and (future collaborators) Ron Howard and James Cameron did: working for Roger Corman on B movies. And like the others, it did not take long for Horner’s work to garner attention in Hollywood. Horner’s breakthrough into the mainstream came in 1982 with his score on Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; not long after, Horner would receive his first Academy Award nomination for his work on Aliens.
Speaking of Aliens, one particular thing from Horner that furthered my already deep appreciation for the art (and challenges) of film composing was his frank assessment on his first partnership with James Cameron. Given that Horner’s work on the sci-fi classic was Oscar-nominated and has achieved an iconic status (especially the climactic cue, “Bishop’s Countdown”) one might never believe that the score was, in fact, only around “80% complete,” and created under extremely difficult circumstances. Horner recounts the experience here: Interview with James Horner about “Aliens”
Cameron and Horner parted ways after that troubled collaboration. Fortunately, both would made amends and eventually reunited to great success on Titanic and Avatar. Horner was reportedly also set to return to scoring duties on the Avatar sequels.
Musically, I define Horner by his preternatural ability to compose a heart-tugging melody, by his innate talent at creating soaring cadences. I have long considered Horner to be on par with John Williams in invoking awe and wonder with his cues, with evoking emotional pathos from audiences. As he stated in a 2009 interview with the Los Angeles Times, “My job… is to make sure at every turn of the film it’s something the audience can feel with their heart. When we lose a character, when somebody wins, when somebody loses, when someone disappears — at all times I’m keeping track, constantly, of what the heart is supposed to be feeling. That is my primary role.”
I know some of my fellow film score nerds have given Horner grief over the years for referencing and repurposing older cues/motifs in his later works, but personally I never really had a major issue with it. Horner is certainly not the first artist, musical or otherwise, to be self-referential to some extent.
Before his untimely end, Horner’s career would come to include scoring over 100 films (including 3 Best Picture winners), two Oscars (both for Titanic) and eight additional Oscar nominations. His was an accomplished career by any stretch of the imagination, and I’m sure he was an inspiration to many aspiring film composers.
I end this tribute with five of my favorite compositions from Horner’s repertoire. Note that this is a very small sample from a very productive composer, and I definitely left out quite a few others, so please feel free to share your favorites as well in the comments.
“Charging Fort Wagner” from Glory (1989, dir. Edward Zwick):
“One Last Wish” from Casper (1995, dir. Brad Silberling):
“All Systems Go – The Launch” from Apollo 13 (1995, dir. Ron Howard):
“If We Hold On Together” from The Land Before Time (1988, dir. Don Bluth):
“Becoming One of the People, Becoming One with Neytiri” from Avatar (2009, dir. James Cameron):
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I am still in a shock. My mind refuses to believe. I guess I’m going to accept this in time.
James Horner was a personal hero of mine. His music has inspired me deeply, even to consider working on film music myself. His mastery and brilliance had unique quality that none of the other great music creators of our time could outshine. He firmly carved his place in a scene of giant Williamses and Newmans. Horner had very polished style that aged like wine, and its also incredible loss for the industry that his late years for music are denied by such tragic accident.
Horner’s style was so well developed in time that – at last myself – I was able to say when watching a new movie and not knowing who made the score “That must be James Horner, I bet!”. And it was. Such level of expression maturity is hard to reach by a composer. And yet, his work was distinctly unique each time. Marked by a well developed style, but still innovative and fresh. Many times I’ve thought “That is now his best work, he can’t outdo it”, only to see him come with something even more inspiring and touching next year. James Horner was a rare combination of solid technical mastery, creative seeking mind, and moving romantic heart. His absence leaves a big hole on the scene that is film music of our days.
He had particularly great collaborations with Ron Howard and James Cameron. Some of their most successful projects were backed by his music. It will be sad not having him on their next big works.
Rest in peace, James Horner, you will be missed… Planes, I am so angry at planes right now. There have to be better ways to evacuate passengers from plane crashes. I refuse to accept the current state of plane traveling as “just the way it is”.
I first noticed James Horner’s name on a score for the 1985 film, “Cocoon”. I was struck my the melodies and originality of the score. The music really elevated that film into something special.
Another score of his that goes unnoticed is contained in a little-seen Ellen Burstyn film called “The Spitfire Grill”. It’s one of Horner’s better scores if you ever want to check it out. A great symphonic elegiac piece.
So tonight, in order to honor James Horner for giving me many pleasurable hours in cinema and many more so listening to his scores, I am going to listen to these two scores tonight when I get home from work.
This is a great, unexpected loss to the film industry.
One of my all time favorites. Braveheart and Legends of the Fall are 2 of my all time favorite film scores. RIP.
James Cameron’s tribute to Horner has been posted online: http://www.ew.com/article/2015/06/23/james-cameron-james-horner-tribute
To Cameron’s credit, he acknowledges what happened during their time on Aliens, and made every effort to put Horner in position to succeed 10 years later with Titanic:
He had done two scores in 1995, for Apollo 13 and Braveheart, that I just thought were the best film music out there. And I said, notwithstanding whatever happened to us 10 years before, that he was the guy. So I was falling all over myself to find a way to make the working relationship better for him than the last time. And it turned out to be the dream team. When he would come up with a melody, he would invite me over to his studio in Malibu and just play it for me on his piano. So it was a very collaborative right from the inception.”
This is so so so so so sad. I’m in total disbelief.
Never heard a live rendition of the iconically propulsive “Futile Escape” cue from Aliens live until just now. Pretty awesome.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xo9lUPeAAJs
I just can’t take anymore news of people dying. My friends son suddenly died two weeks ago and then that horrible shooting in South Carolina, and now this brilliant composer. Ugh it’s just so sad, my condolences to his wife and daughters:(
The Aliens, Titanic, and Avatar’s scores were all so brilliant and beautiful, thankyou James wherever you are…
Thanks so much for this splendid tribute, Marshall. Your selection of that piece from THE LAND BEFORE TIME has done me in.
He is definitely one of the best in the business. The Avatar sequels will now struggle to match his gorgeous score from the original movie. He contributed to countless great movies and his loss will be widely felt in Hollywood.
Within this last week, a newly remastered recording of Horner’s “Searching for Bobby Fischer” score was released. My wife was honored to write an analysis of the track “Josh and Vinnie” that appeared in the promotional materials. To her especially as a published composer, Horner’s music shared a quality of most every esteemed composer: layer upon layer of depth and meaning that reveal themselves the more they are studied. For a generation that grew up with so many movies that bore his musical fingerprints, Horner was every bit the equal of Williams. He continued a legacy of musical depth and pathos that goes back to Goldsmith, Herrmann, Steiner, Korngold… all using music to complement and bring to greater life what was seen on screen. RIP.
As much as I may barely mention “My Heart Will Go On” and the Titanic score these days…they both get me. The score for Aliens is masterful. If ever there was a movie I grew up on it was that and the music playing when the last handful of marines hold off the swarm of aliens and then proceed into the vents made me want to BE one of those colonial marines for so long. I used to run around my house pretending to be one and imagining the percussion playing in my head. He will be missed.
What a shame. He was a composer who knew how to wring enormous amounts of emotion with just a few notes. Thinking right now of the cornfield in Field of Dreams.
This man has been an “A” lister for over 3 decades. The man was 29 when he got a shot at scoring “Star Trek: Wrath of Khan”. He was the kind of all time greats like John Williams and Hans Zimmer are or Jerry Goldsmith was, who maybe wasn’t always in the spotlight, but delivered one brilliant score after another. Departed way to soon and certainly had a lot more great music in him that regretfully no one will ever hear.
Great tribute. I’ve listened countless times to his “Braveheart” soundtrack, and this track in particular: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkLrnI7SsVY
As a fellow trained musician, I’ve no shame in admitting that My Heart Will Go On brings massive gay tears to my eyes every single fucking time. And I don’t even like that stupid film.
The New World ftw. His music for that is masterful. He’ll be much, much missed 🙁
Fitting that our fellow composer writes this tribute. And a great one. Horner’s one of the best, no doubt about that. His scores drift in and out of my conscious regularly. And as a screenwriter he scores many of my scenes before, during, and after I have written them. Another sad, sad, loss.
Dear God no, so many times have I listened to that TITANIC soundtrack as a child pretending my bed was sinking.
Rest assured, “He’s here in our hearts and His Heart will Go on and On!”